Bayern Munich Prepared to Wait for Lewandowski

Bayern Munich chief executive Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has said that he is prepared to wait until 2014 to sign Robert Lewandowski.

Lewandowski has one year remaining on his current contract at Borussia Dortmund and will be allowed to leave the club for free if he stays until next summer.

Quoted in an interview given to German magazine SportBild, via the Mirror’s Jim Daly, Rummenigge said:

We no longer want to talk about it this season but I expect Dortmund know what will happen next summer.

I get the feeling that (Dortmund general manager) Mr Watzke means what he says. He is bound to have considered very well his remark that Lewandowski has got to stay.

That is not how things work in the football world. We did not send a written offer, but there are reasons for that and that does not change anything.

We were prepared to sit down at a table with Dortmund.

This follows last week’s news from Dortmund manager Jurgen Klopp, who admitted the club are resigned to losing their star striker next year.

Elsewhere, Dortmund’s Sven Bender insists that Lewandowski will be committed to the team this season, despite all the rumours about his future.

The midfielder was quoted in Chris Kvesa's article on Goal.com, as saying: "We have a superb team with a great atmosphere among the squad. Robbie is committed and gives everything. He's the same he has always been."

Meanwhile, Lewandowski has just been announced as one of 10 players shortlisted for UEFA’s Best Player in Europe award, as seen on UEFA.com

But Klopp has admitted that Lewandowski will leave the Westfalenstadion this time next year.

According to an interview given to German newspaper Welt am Sonntag and quoted by John Drayton in the Daily Mail, he said:

I think it is a known fact that Robert is going to play for Bayern after the upcoming season.

Now the only question is how to shape the time until then.

That is our concern and it is our commitment to our fans and members to ensure that we will have a more competitive team in the upcoming season.

Up to a certain point we were with Robert's desire for change and were ready to talk. But nothing happened so we had to eventually say: [A sale] now no longer works for us.

And now we want to prove that, with a quality player like Robert, we can be successful in the coming year. Our results in the coming season is what we're all about. I know that Robert and I see it the same way.

Lewandowski reported to pre-season training with Dortmund this week. The striker joined up with the rest of the squad after an extended summer break, following last month's international duty with Poland.

The Uruguayan has a £53 million buy-out clause in his contract and Chelsea are thought to be considering a cash-plus-player offer with Fernando Torres as the makeweight in the deal.

However, if the move doesn't come off, Chelsea could focus their attentions on Lewandowski instead.

Lipton says that Jose Mourinho has identified Lewandowski as “the kind of player he could work with” and suggests that the Portuguese manager may let striker Demba Ba leave this summer in a club “shake up.”

Chelsea have been linked with Lewandowski before, as seen in this article by John Drayton in the Daily Mail.

The Mirror also reported last week that Manchester City were interested in bringing Lewandowski to the Etihad, following the departure of Carlos Tevez to Juventus.

The report, by David Anderson, also suggests that Manchester United have “gone cold” on Lewandowski since David Moyes became manager at the club.

Whereas, in The Sun on Saturday, Martin Blackburn suggests that Manchester United and Manchester City are prepared to “do battle” to sign the striker.

According to The Sun article, Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has already been in touch with Lewandowski’s agents. There are also claims that United have had hardly any contact with the player’s representatives over the summer.

Elsewhere, in an article by the Independent’s Martin Hardy, it seems that Lewandowski will see out the final 12 months of his contract with Dortmund, where he will be free to join the club of his choice next summer.

Hardy says:

Robert Lewandowski has been told he will not be allowed to leave Borussia Dortmund for either Bayern Munich or Manchester United this summer.

Stay tuned for developments as we get closer to the official opening of the transfer window on July 1.

We have communicated to the player and his advisers that we will not agree to a transfer to FC Bayern this summer.

There will be with him now perhaps a small phase of disappointment.

But then he will deliver his usual performance, as does a professional with character... and Robert has a whole lot of character.

Elsewhere, in an interview in Bild (via the Guardian) on Monday, Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke said:

The Bayern case is closed because there was no written offer. There were two phone calls in the past four weeks with Bayern. We told Bayern that due to stock exchange rules [Dortmund are a listed company] we need a written offer for Lewandowski. But until today, no offer has come in. If Robert wants to go to Munich he will have another chance next year.

Watzke's interview might put Premier League clubs on red alert, as he did not completely rule out a summer move for Lewandowski. He added:

I am not saying he will definitely stay but he will certainly not be playing for Bayern in 2013. Everything else will be discussed with Robert and his advisers in the coming days. Our wish is for Robert to play for Borussia Dortmund next season.

As of today, an official Bayern offer does not exist. I'd still like to think that Robert will play for us next season. We will see to it that we will put an end to the speculation over the next few days.

The funny thing is everybody's acting like it's all done. Jupp Heynckes says it, his agents say it - and we have no offer. What's that all about? How things are turning out now is not fair or nice.

The transfer rumours look set to continue on into the summer.

Lewandowski’s season is still underway, the 24-year-old will be lining up for Poland in an International Friendly v Liechtenstein on Tuesday and a World Cup qualifying match against Moldova on June 7.

With just one year remaining on his Dortmund contract, Lewandowski has told the club he will not sign a new deal and the German outfit are understood to favour selling him to a foreign club rather than Bayern, their direct rivals.

Where Lewandowski will end up this summer is still to be decided, so keep checking back for updates.

We will keep you informed with all the latest transfer talk right here.